NHL notebook: Lightning general manager Yzerman resigns

Tampa Bay Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman resigned his position to spend more time with his family in Detroit.

FILE PHOTO: Steve Yzerman, general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning, speaks to media in New York, January 9, 2013. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

Yzerman said he will become a senior adviser to Julien BriseBois, who will be the team’s general manager after serving as an assistant GM. Yzerman, 53, had been general manager of the Lightning since 2010. He was entering the final season of a four-year contract, and the team had been hopeful of signing him to an extension.

“I feel this change in role is important for me to allow me to spend more time with my family and to still make sure the Lightning is managed to the level everyone has come to expect,” Yzerman said. “We are all delighted that Julien is our next GM. He is more than ready.”

Yzerman was named the league’s General Manager of the Year for the 2014-15 season. During his tenure, the Lightning won a conference title and a division title and made the playoffs five times.

—Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk reiterated to fans on Tuesday that he doesn’t plan to move his team.

A day after appearing in a video on the club’s site that said as much, Melnyk published an open letter in the Ottawa Citizen and Ottawa Sun that reiterated he and the team aren’t going anywhere. “Our Senators are in Ottawa to stay,” Melnyk wrote.

Melnyk also announced a multiyear plan to rebuild the organization, based on “hockey excellence, a fan-first experience, business growth and community engagement.” The Senators were one of the worst teams in the league last year at 28-43-11, missing the postseason for the third time in five seasons.

—The New York Rangers acquired defenseman Adam McQuaid from the Boston Bruins. In exchange, the Bruins receive defender Steven Kampfer, a 2019 fourth-round draft pick and a conditional seventh-round pick. Kampfer makes his return to Boston, having played for the team from 2010-12.

McQuaid, 31, had one goal and three assists in 38 games last season. He missed time with a broken right fibula. For his nine-year career, all spent with the Bruins, McQuaid has 13 goals and 53 assists in 462 games. He’s averaged just over 16 minutes of ice time a game in that span.

Kampfer, 29, has 10 goals and 16 assists in 166 career games. His best offensive showing was in his debut season with the Bruins, when he had five goals and five assists in 38 games (2010-11).